The Nightshift
by Grimol
Summary: "Found a job to make ends meet. An easy and relaxing job for six hours. Yet something doesn't feel right, and all my suspicions are confirmed when the voice on the answering machine tell me how this place works after hours." [Told in the first person, this is just a spur of the moment idea in hopes to capture some of the terror of the restaurant.]


Intro?

I turned my head to read the clock show 12:00 AM and I leaned back in the chair beaming at my luck to have finally found such a cake job after moving out on my own. The advertisement was in the newspaper and it wasn't five minutes after I called them; they gave me a call back saying they wanted an interview. My heart soared as this meant I could make ends meet, my bank was running low on funds and I didn't want to make a bad first impression on my landlord. My father told me he was proud that I found a job so shortly after arriving, saying I was being proactive and finally getting ahead in life.

But, looking back on it…I wish I hadn't answered that phone, listened to the voicemail that was left for new employees on their first night. No, I wish I hadn't sat in that chair or even entered that building.

"Hello? Hello, hello!"

My dad asked me before hanging up the prior night what the name of the company was…and I told him…

"Uh, welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza."

I sat there in the reclining chair, zoning out as I rolled back and forth on its wheels, a little fan blowing a refreshing breeze across my face. Was really relaxing and I quickly settled into a lazy sloth-like state, smiling at how easy this job was. The reality of it all shattered when I heard the beeping on the answering machine.

"Hello? Hello, hello! Uh, welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza! This is something I recorded for all the new guys coming through on the night shift, and I used to work in that position so I can tell you how to make your job as smooth and with as little stress as possible." The voice cracked on the machine. The man sounded like he was being overly polite so his voice lacked the bass as I'd expected from someone higher up; reminded me of a teenager who just hit puberty actually, somewhat amusing to think about.

My eyes glanced over the camera and I saw on the stage in the main area were three silhouettes standing motionlessly in the dim light. The figures intrigued me with a sense of mystery, but not like the mystery from Aladdin, more like the fascination people have with old abandoned homes like Amityville. You hear the stories and you want to know what happened to make it like this. And like all homes, the little voice in your mind punches you in the gut with dread, telling you the cliché _'You don't want to know'_.

"Now, there are some rules I should tell you about before you can do your job." _Wait, what? Why would I need anything more than what they told me at the interview?'_ I thought to myself. I looked back at the cameras and something caught my eye on the stage. I couldn't pick it out but it sent chills down my back just looking at it. "First, there's an introduction you probably got at the interview so we'll pretend we read it and say we did."

'_I like this guy already, he knows how to cut out the bullshit.'_

"So to get into your job, it's not that bad actually and nothing at all to worry about."

'_Odd thing to say in a recording, but maybe it's for the nervous newcomer jitters.'_

"Uhh, the animatronics have some interesting things about them. If you haven't noticed but they tend to wander around at night, we do that so the lubricants can do their job and thus cut down on cost in the long run."

I looked at the stage and sure enough, one of the silhouettes was gone. _'That's actually really cool, robots that move on their own, this is some next-generation crap.' _My gut started acting up as those words left my lips. In hopes of quenching it, I took a sip from the soda I brought with me.

"Now keep in mind that these animatronics have been in the family entertaining children for twenty years now, so treat them with some respect." The voice continued. "They used to be able to do this during the daytime but then there was an…incident in '87, so the animatronics weren't allowed to do that anymore. Surprised the guy made it." I felt a little concerned but I can imagine that things will happen, especially after twenty years and they've only had one incident? More than most construction companies can say.

"Concerning your safety, there is a red button by the door on either side of you that will bring down a heavy barrier. This is should any robbers attempt to break in, you have something to keep them at bay. The other thing is the animatronics have their own rules. If a Freddy Fazbear employee is without their proper attire, then the animatronics will attempt to…resolve the issue; which means stuffing someone into the empty suits in the back."

At this point, I nearly jumped out of my chair. I didn't notice that my heart was racing and amidst the conversation, I saw a silhouette in the camera feed just down the hall from me. I started shaking and without thinking I reached for the red button and felt the satisfaction as it did indeed bring down a large heavy door. I slumped back into my chair and nonchalantly pressed the other button, sealing myself in. Not sure why I was so-

"But that's all, remember to conserve power and close the doors only when necessary. The boss tells me if the power goes over that he'll take it from the paycheck of the ones responsible. Have a goodnight!"

_Shit._ The message machine clicked back to standby mode and the world froze for me, the thoughts of conflicting interests screaming through my head. _But you need the money. _No, the landlord needs it, I can always find another job. _You can do that tomorrow after work, let's ride this out for the first paycheck and get on our feet._ Coming to that conclusion I resigned myself to my chair as my eyes drifted over the monitor.

It had a reading for power on the side of it, I was assuming that was the allowed budget they gave us at the night shift…and it was going down alarmingly fast. The doors, no, my shield from them was the reason for the power loss. Damn it! I reached a hand to the red button and noticed a second button which stayed my fingers. It read 'Lights'. Curious.

Pressing the button I saw a light flicker behind the steel barrier. The light seemed obscured though so I moved myself around to the window beside the door for a better view. As I moved my head around, the light flickered and caused my eyes to blink rapidly. The light stabilized and I breathed a sigh of relief as there was nothing there. I pressed the red button and released the door, hearing the sound of metal rise. Remembering the power, I hit the light switch as well and turned to the other door.

The white light behind the door was on and this time, there was no mistaking it. While most things in the world that imitate life look through you, this thing was looking at me. The shell was purple and it had the appearance of a rabbit. The animatronic style of it seemed to take away from the child appeal and replace it with horror, the eyes were sunk back into the dome, the eyes that were little tiny sparks of light. My body was stiff, my breathing nearly nonexistent, my eyes were glued to this…thing. Like the mystery of creepy homes, upon stumbling inside and coming into contact with anything, you wish you didn't open the door. I wish I didn't enter this place.

I would have had a staring contest with that creature the whole night if the light didn't flicker. Upon stabilizing, the purple machine was gone, leaving a much deeper sense of dread in my gut than when it was looking at me. The hair on my neck stood up at the very thought. I couldn't sit down and resolved to make it through the night. The door was now open and the lights were off, my power flow was even and steady. _Just watch the cameras, make sure they don't get near the door and you'll be fine. Yea, that's it._ But this was all a lie, my body was still shaking. The sweat still evidence of the encounter with the animatronic.

The monitors showed all three of the silhouettes were back on the stage, _'Exactly where you should be.'_ I assured myself. I cycled through the cameras and noticed some drawings on the walls, mostly children's drawings and they had a calming effect on me. At least until the children had drawings of the things. I found out that the purple one was 'Bonnie the Bunny'. Another pictured showed 'Chica the Chicken' giving cupcakes to a child and 'Freddy Fazbear' hugging another. I caught only the title of another picture, 'Foxy the Pirate', but I discarded this information.


End file.
